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Belgium and the UN together, Sunday 21 October, on the Grand Place in Brussels!

Are you aware of all the different aspects of the United Nations work, not only in its headquarters in New York, Geneva, Vienna (...) but also in the field? Its role in preventive diplomacy; its actions for the environment and for the poorest people in our societies worldwide; its role in the defence of human rights?

Do you know that Belgium is a founding member of the United Nations and that the first President of the General Assembly was the Belgian Paul-Henri Spaak?

What is the impact of a country the size of Belgium on this large organization of 193 States members?

How is Belgium contributing to the different programs and missions of the UN?

You can discover the answers to these questions, and many more, at the United Nations Village on the Grand Place in Brussels on Sunday, 21 October, from 11am to 5pm.

Many games will be organized for all ages and souvenir gifts will be distributed to the participants.

In addition to these game-based activities, you will also discover many examples of the UN and Belgium in action. The High Commission for Refugees will have a typical UNHCR tent to demonstrate the extreme living conditions of refugees; the World Food Program will be present with an emergency stove and you can taste the kind of food that is distributed in emergency situations.

The Belgian Federal Public Service for Foreign Policy and Development Cooperation will be highlighting their diplomacy activities and support for sustainable development.

The Belgian Ministry of Defense, the Army museum and the Association of Veterans will have stands to present their activities and missions.

The two Belgian United Nations associations (APNU and VVN) will describe their information activities and their recruitment procedures.

Finally, the City of Brussels will also be there to explain the importance of the Grand Place as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

When the Security Council approaches the final stage of negotiation of a draft resolution the text is printed in blue... What's in Blue helps interested UN readers keep up with what might soon be "in blue".

The Brussels based United Nations Regional Information Centre for Western Europe - UNRIC provides information on UN activities to the countries of the region. It also provides liaison with institutions of the European Union in the field of information. Its outreach activities extend to all segments of society and joint campaigns, projects and events are organized with partners including the EU, governments, the media, NGOs, schools and local authorities.